Shentonista Eats — Luxuriate

Brunch should be luxurious. It seems like it’s a way of rewarding ourselves after spending all week slogging over work; over the weekend, there’s nothing more gratifying than snoozing and sleeping in, and then waking up to a hearty meal and catching up with loved ones in as leisurely a manner as possible.

It seems like it’s almost everyone’s favourite thing to do on their days off, as many Shentonistas have shared with us. But how often does brunch actually satisfy us? We travel to obscure locations in search of the next ‘it’ café, and then willingly subject ourselves to hours of waiting for a table, sometimes outdoors, under the heat of the mid-morning sun. We’ve had our fair share of measly portions that look nothing like what it does on the menu; overcooked/undercooked poached eggs; soggy waffles, watery coffees; and overpriced dishes that don’t really feel worth the travel, the wait, or the anticipation.

Sometimes all we want is something simple. Nothing too fancy — enough with the strange concoctions of flavours that sound practically diabetes-inducing, or the confused mixture of different cuisines and ingredients in one dish that can only be politely described as ‘interesting’. Sometimes we just want simple, straightforward fare, so that we know what we’re getting, and that we know can’t fail us.

Here’s where brunch at Luxe Singapore comes in. They’re run by the Luxe group that operates several cafés back in Sydney, which are known for their all-day breakfasts, so that’s already a good sign. Another good sign is being able to understand what we’re ordering off the menu.

There’re dishes like housemade granola with blood orange and pomegranate salad, served with full-cream milk. Eggs here are either poached or scrambled, served with your choice of sides. We’d recommend avocado — who doesn’t love eggs and avocado? — and pork & fennel sausage.

They also have the usual suspects like Eggs Benedict, Eggs Royale, and Eggs Florentine, and things like a Luxe Plate with sourdough toast, marinated goat’s cheese, avocado, and tomato. It might sound a little plain, but it’s a fail-proof dish.

And we know we said we don’t want anything too fancy, but we can’t resist a little tease. One of our favourites is the ricotta hotcake with berries, maple syrup, and exploding candy — the kind that reminds us of the lollipops we used to have as kids, the ones that came with little sachets of a similar popping candy. It’s a dish that brings us right back to our childhood.

What we also like about Luxe is the polished interior. Are we the only ones who sometimes feel that a lot of café interiors are starting to look similar nowadays? To be sure, Luxe isn’t really a café; it sits somewhere between casual diner and upscale restaurant. It has a mix of warm wooden furniture that would fit comfortably in any living room, and some sophisticated touches of brass countertops and marble finishings. We also love the lounge area in the front, which is the perfect spot for a drink or two before your meal, or for just relaxing and trying to recover from a post-meal food coma.

Luxe now serves brunch from Tuesday to Sunday, until 3PM, so if you’re one of the lucky ones that works nearby, brunch doesn’t have to be a weekends-only thing.